Hacking Windows7 MediaCenter

Sometimes you just need a single Directshow filter, say an MKV splitter to use with the default Windows 7 codecs. Should you install a codec pack when all you need is a single splitter? Absolutely not! Maybe you just need an x64 video decoder capable of hardware acceleration. There’s no reason to download something you don’t need to get the functions you want from your current filter setup.

What you do need, is to get acquainted with a little resource on Sourceforge where you can download stand alone filters used in the popular Media Player Classic – Homecinema media player. This resource includes practically any splitter or decoder you might need in single serving sizes. No need to download that complete codec pack to get a single filter!

Finding the right filter for your needs can be slightly cryptic but not too difficult. First you should choose the correct platform, x86 or x64, or be sure to download and register both versions for maximum compatibility on x64 systems. You should be able to discern the type of filter from the filename of each download (especially if you’re looking for something specific). For instance, MPCVideoDec is the video decoder used in Media Player Classic which is capable of DXVA (GPU hardware acceleration).

Getting your filter registered can be slightly more difficult. You will need to extract the file to a location on your hard disk then open an elevated command prompt. To get an elevated command prompt simply open your start menu and type “cmd” then press ctrl-shift-enter. Once inside type the following: “C:\Windows\system32\regsvr32 FILELOCATION”, replacing FILELOCATION with the location of the extracted file. For registering x64 filters do the same except use: “C:\Windows\sysWOW64\regsvr32 FILELOCATION”.

To uninstall a previously installed filter follow the same steps to launch an elevated command prompt then enter “C:\Windows\system32\regsvr32 /u FILELOCATION” or “C:\Windows\sysWOW64\regsvr32 /u FILELOCATION” depending on the version.

Those are all the steps to download and install individual filters from the Media Player Classic – Homecinema project for use in your DirectShow setup. As long as no errors occurred during the process the filters should be installed and ready to use.

Need more? Take a look at Clearing Up the Codec Confusion for a more complete guide to setting up your codecs and filters!

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Tagged As: codec, graphstudio, install

Getting your movie collection into order, especially when you’ve got a rather large one, can be quite the chore. Each movie needs to have it’s own folder, cover art and synopsis information. Getting these to cooperate with Media Center’s native AMG information grabbing can be equally tricky. These tips can get you on your way to a great looking movie collection inside Media Center’s native Movie Library as well as the popular movie plug-in Media Browser.

Get some structure

The first step to getting your collection into shape is to get your folder structure together. If all your movies are just clumped into a single folder there’s a simple .bat file that can get things into top shape. Just download this movie organizing .bat file and place it in your movie folder. It will take the filenames of your movies (and any extra subtitle or similar files), create a directory with the same name and place all the files inside.

Find cover art and details

Finding cover art and synopsis information for each of your movies is going to be slightly trickier. There are several tools which can assist in getting the proper files downloaded, though many of them don’t quite work as well as they did in Vista Media Center.

The first such tool, DVD Library Manager, works fairly well for retrieving cover art and even editing the details of each movie. DVD Library Manager can automatically retrieve movie information from Amazon or IMDB, including the ability to save cover art as a folder.jpg file to each movie’s folder. This handy little tool can save quite a bit of time but the xml files created aren’t compatible with all features of Media Center, such as AMG information retrieval.

To get the most out of the native Movie Library you will need to use a resource like DVDXml.com. Sign up for DVDXml.com to be able to search for and download Movie Library compatible XML files for each of your movies. Downloading one of these XML and placing it in each movie’s folder will allow Media Center to automatically retrieve cover art and movie details, including AMG information. Though this method does produce better results in the native Movie Library it does not allow you to edit the details. Choosing the right solution for you, or a combination, is key to getting the best of your collection.

Extra tips for Media Browser

For those of us using Media Browser for our movie collections there are a few additional steps we can take to beef up our collection’s display. For instance, add actor images to the movie actors display inside Media Browser using ImagesByName and the collection of images already compiled by the group on Google Code. Go even farther and add encoding information to Media Browser by using the MediaInfo project and adding the right .dll to your Windows system directory.

While you’re at it you may also want to take a look at your TV series  collection inside of Media Browser. Take a look at MediaScout, this handy program will help you retrieve all your series information in one easy to use application. Recent build of MediaScout even add support for movie collections, though it’s not as beefy as some other options.

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Once you’ve gone through these steps you should be well on your way to having a more enjoyable movie collection on your Media Center. Restart Media Center to find your newly organized movie collection along with cover art and synopsis information. Media Browser users of course will have a few added features over the native Movie Library. Either way you go you’re movie library will be looking good from now on.

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Tagged As: featured, install, media browser, movie library

  If you’ve been reading Hack7MC regularly you’ve probably noticed that a number of tools are used quite frequently. This quick list will get you on your way to doing some Media Center Hacking of your own in no time.

Find those Hidden Folders

By default, many of the folders Media Center uses to store data are hidden from the user. To get instant access to these folders in Windows Explorer, open Control Panel then Folder Options. On the View tab, scroll until you see the Hidden Files and Folders Section. Set this option to Show Hidden Files, Folders and Drives.

Take Control of Your Files

By default, Windows will lock the user out of access to certain system files, including many of those that affect Media Center. To get around this we can use the “Take Ownership” registry fix which allows us to right-click any file and take control. Just download the fix and double-click to apply it to your machine.

Always Make Backups!

Before getting into the programs used to hack Media Center’s system files it’s important to note you should always make backups. There is absolutely NO REASON to not take the time to place a copy of those files you’re editing in a safe folder. This can save you more time and headaches than all the others Media Center hacks combined.

A Few Good Programs

Now that we have access to all those hidden and locked files and folders let’s get a few programs to let us into the meat of those files. First we need to open a few .dll files to get to the good stuff inside.

Restorator is the perfect program for editing Media Center’s dll files. This program gives you the ability to extract the image and xml files contained inside each dll. Although there are many other choices in resource editing programs, Restorator is a perfect choice for it’s ability to work natively with PNG files used frequently in Media Center.

Once you’ve extracted those files from the dlls using Restorator, you’ll need a few good tools to edit them as well. One of the main types of files besides PNG files, which can be edited in most any image editor, are XML files. These can be edited in notepad but there’s a better way.

XML Notepad 2007 is a program from Microsoft that is free to download from the Microsoft Download Center. This program will simplify the way you work with XML files by breaking them down into an easy to navigate tree view. This setup is perfectly suited for edit Media Center’s XML files and the price tag can’t be beat.

Once you’ve got the tools you’re ready to set out on your own to try out a few Media Center modifications of your own. To find the bulk of Media Center’s files make your way to \Windows\ehome\ in Windows Explorer. The database and packages for Media Center are typically stored in \ProgramData and Users\Username\AppData folders. Just poke around, make sure you’ve got backups and have fun but remember who sent you! Let me know if you come up with a great new hack at mhealy@hack7mc.com and share it with the community.

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Tagged As: featured, install, programs, settings, windows 7

Spring is only a week away, let’s take a look at a few ways your can breathe some new life into your Media Center. These five hacks can put a whole new face on the Media Center interface bringing a sense of renewal to an old box.

Bring new life to the start menu

Digging through the extra programs menu in Windows 7 Media Center can be a hassle. Even when you’ve added items to the Extras menu it’s just not as convenient as it could be. Why not use this guide to Add New Start Menu Strips to Media Center.

Add some flair to the TV Guide with Channel Logos

Staring down the default Media Center TV Guide’s channel numbers and cryptic channel names can wear a person down.  The lack of quickly recognizable stations can even waste valuable time you could be spending on spring cleaning. Spice up your listings with My Channel Logos which will Add Channel Logos to your Media Center TV Guide.

Launch more programs from Media Center

Don’t limit yourself to programs that support Media Center out of the box. Launch any program from Media Center’s Extra Programs (or a custom start menu!) using Media Center Launcher and Configurator. These two little apps can add tons of new usability to your ten foot interface.

Replace Movie Library with a fresh solution

Media Center’s default Movie Library is a decent way to find your movie’s all in one place but let’s face it, it could be better. Replacing the default Movie Library with Media Browser can open up a world of new options. Sort your movies into folders with custom images using the new configuration program or get Encoding Information or Actor Pictures right inside Media Browser.

Add a whole new theme to your Media Center

Sometimes something as simple as just Changing Your Background can improve your whole outlook. Pick your own background to use in Media Center from a site like InterfaceLift.com or use a premade 7MC theme like Homeworld or Road to Nowhere. Even better Make Your Own Theme for Media Center and share it with the world!

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Tagged As: featured, install, plugins, programs, windows 7

Currently, in Windows 7 Media Center, there is no way to edit the default start menu items. In previous versions you were able to add items to the existing strips using a third party program, which made sense when adding a movie or TV plug-in. Unfortunately, Microsoft has gone to some lengths to disable this ability in 7MC. It is still possible to create a couple of custom strips in the start menu though.

The first step to getting your new menu strip is to choose what programs you want to be on it. These programs have to be already entered into the Media Center’s Extra Programs. You can find a guide on adding new entries to the Extra Programs using Media Center Launcher and Configurator right here. Once all the programs you want to launch from your new bar are installed open a registry editor (start > “regedit” > enter).

Once inside navigate to the following location in the left hand tree view:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Extensibility\Entry Points]

Listed under this key will be a number of id numbers. Each program inside Media Center will have a couple of unique keys to identify that particular program. To find the program(s) you want to add to the menu go through each entry and find the id that matches the title of the program. The title should be listed on the right hand side under an entry named “title”.

Create and Name the New Menu Strip

Once you’ve found the correct program entry select AppId, right-click and select “Modify..”. Now copy the AppId from the text box and close the box without altering anything. Now locate the following registry location:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Start Menu\Applications]

Then right-click and select “New > Key”. Paste the AppId we copied earlier into the Key name. Next, in the right hand window right-click and create three new strings: “Category, OnStartMenu and Title”. Also create one DWORD named “TimeStamp”.

Right-click to modify each value, setting Category to the name of your new strip and Title to the name to display in Media Center. OnStartMenu should be set to “True” and TimeStamp is a number value determining the position of the new strip in Media Center.

Add New Programs to the Menu Strip

Once this new strip has been created we need to add entries to it. Locate the following key:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Extensibility\Categories]

Right-click the key and create a new key under “Categories” with the same name as the Category you set in the last steps. Now go back to the proper key under “Entry Points” as we did above and copy the correct key (not the AppId, this time get the key by selecting Rename and copying from the text box). Then create a new key under your new category with the same name as the program’s Entry Point Id number. I know it sounds confusing, take a look at the image below for an example.

Set the Program Information

Under this new key we need to create five new string values: “AppId, Context, Description, Enabled and Title”. Also, create one Dword entry called “TimeStamp. Copy the AppId from the program’s Entry Points listing (AppId value in the right pane) then fill in the Title, Description and Context with any values you want. Title and Description will appear in Media Center while context seems to go unused at this time. The “Enabled” string should be set to “True” so that the item appears in the menu strip.

TimeStamp will control the position of each item in the menu, for example one (1) would be listed before two (2) in the strip. To enter Dword values as a regular number select the “Decimal” option on the right of the dialog.

Then Repeat!

To add more entries to your new menu strip simply add a new key under the category for each program you want to add and repeat the steps above. Each program should have a different AppId, Title, TimeStamp and Description.

If your new menu strip doesn’t appear double-check the Entry Point and App Id numbers for each entry. An improper number in any of these will cause the menu strip to not be shown.

Hopefully someone can create a little program to allow this to be done without all the registry mucking but until then this will do the job. If you do create a program be sure to drop a note in the comments so we can let the rest of the community know!

Stay tuned to Hack7MC for upcoming reviews on plug-ins to add to your new menu strip!

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Tagged As: configurator, featured, install, launcher, programs, settings, start menu, windows 7

Although programs like GraphStudio can help us find out what’s going wrong during the playback of our media files, it isn’t really the easiest way to fix the problems.This is where a program like Radlight’s Filter Manager can come in handy. Unfortunately, this tool is no longer in development so no x64 version exists but an x86 version can be found for download here.

Using Filter Manager we can set the merits of DirectShow filters allow us to control what filters are loaded for certain file types. Each time a media file is loaded Windows will search for the filter with the highest merit capable of playing the file. Windows will then use that filter to playback the file. In the case of video files it will do this for both the video and audio streams. Using Filter Manager we are able to set the video stream to one codec such as FFDShow and the audio to another such as AC3Filter.

Once you’ve downloaded Filter Manager, simply extract the zip file to a folder on your hard disk. Running Filter Manager for the first time can be a little overwhelming with so many options. The main thing to look for is the section under the General tab for DirectShow Filters. This will provide a list of all the DirectShow filters installed on your machine.

From here setting the merit values of the DirectShow filters on the system is easy. Locate the filter that needs to have the merit level changed and select it in the list. Below the list of filters is a number of options including a dropbox with available merit values. Select the proper value from the list and press “Set Merit Value”. A system restart may be required before settings will take effect but many time simply restarting the media player will do the trick.

Here we also see that Filter Manager can provide a number of other options for customizing the codecs on the machine. Registering of new DirectShow filters is also extremely easy using Filter Manager, just press the “Register” button and select the file to register. Selecting a filter from the list and pressing “Unregister” will do the opposite, unregistering the selected filter. You can even access the particular codec settings by pressing the “Property Page” button.

It may take some effort but using Filter Manager in combination with GraphStudio you’ll be able to get your codecs straightened out to perform just the way you’d like them to.

For even more on codecs in Windows 7 and Media Center check out this article on Clearing Up The Codec Confusion.

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Tagged As: codec, graphstudio, install, programs, windows 7

This tweak actually comes by way of MCEWorld. Sometimes you want the ability to tweak your skip interval settings, after all the average commercial break lasts about 2 minutes not 30 seconds. Maybe you’re obsessed with never overshooting your target and want to fine tune the length to something smaller. Perhaps you want the ability to rewind your half hour show to the beginning with just the touch of a button (probably a bad idea). Whatever the reason to tweak is fairly simple to employ.

First step is to open RegEdit, Window’s built-in registry editor, in administrator mode. To do this open your start menu and type “regedit” into the search box then press “ctrl+shift+enter.”

Once you’ve got the program open navigate to “HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\VideoSettings”.

To change the Skip Forward interval located the “SkipAheadInterval”. Double-click to open the dialog to modify the setting and select the “Decimal” option under “Base.” Change the value to whatever time you want.  The time is measured in milliseconds, default is 29000 or 29 seconds.

To change the Skip Backward interval locate the “InstantReplayInterval” and follow the same steps as above. The default for this setting is 7000 or 7 seconds.

Once you’ve finished setting the values to your desired amounts simply close the RegEdit program and restart your Media Center. That’s all there is to it!

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Tagged As: install, listing, settings, tv guide

Sometimes a change in scenery is in order or perhaps you’ve just got something against the color blue. Either way there is a solution to the predicament. Thanks to Astrotoy7 of The Australian Media Center Community you can change that same old blue Media Center into a sleek black.

Installing this new look couldn’t be much simpler. Just download the x86 file or x64 file depending on your version of Windows 7. Once you’ve got the right file for your system run the own.reg file included. It will show a prompt asking whether or not to continue, press “Yes”. This will allow you to take control of the file that needs replaced to change the theme.

Once the registry entry has been updated navigate your Windows Explorer to “C”\Windows\ehome”. Locate the “ehres.dll” file, right-click and select "Take Ownership" then rename it “ehres.dll.bak”, a prompt asking you to continue will appear – press “Yes.” Once the old file has been renamed transfer the ehres.dll from the download into the same location.

Restart Media Center and that should be all there is to it! Welcome to a new sleek black theme for Media Center.

To revert back to the default theme, simply remove the new “ehres.dll” file and rename the “ehres.dll.bak” to “ehres.dll”. This will restore the system to the original default theme.

For even more customization options check out our articles on plug-ins here!

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Tagged As: featured, install, plugins, themes

Nothing kills a Media Center user like having to pull out the old keyboard and mouse just to sit in front of the TV and run some updates or install new software.  Many have turned to a feature in Windows known as Remote Desktop Connection. This feature, though only included in some versions of Windows, provides an easy way to connect to your Media Center form your everyday desktop PC.

Unfortunately, as long as you are logged into the Media Center no one else can use it.  This means that even though you may feel a little more comfortable the family still loses out on movie time. The solution is Concurrent User Sessions, allowing the Media Center to remain on the TV while letting another user in behind the scenes.

Thanks to the fine folks at Missing Remote  and friends, getting your Windows 7 machine to allow concurrent user sessions is as easy a running a simple command line program.  Just download the program from Missing Remote here then right-click to “Run as Administrator.” That should be all there is too it.

There are also a few command line options which can be run from either an elevated command prompt (type cmd into the start box and press ctrl-shift-enter) or a shortcut run as administrator. To enable blank passwords use “–blank”, “-multi” to enable multiple sessions per user.

Thanks to Missing Remote, Pinobigbird, untermensch and cocoa, we can now sit in the comfort of our well worn desk chairs to work on Media Center without disturbing the family (and incurring the wrath of significant others). Find the original article from Missing Remote right here.

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Tagged As: install, network, programs, windows 7

 
We all love those boxes, our DVRs, PVRs and Media Center PC setups. The problem with all our boxes are similar: there is never anything on and when there is it has too many commercials.  Even our precious DVRs can’t go back in time to fetch that episode we forgot to setup to record.  Our precious Media Centers are consistently lacking decent internet streaming support for all those stations giving it up online. Now there’s a solution: Boxee. 

The new holy grail of the new age in entertainment is being able to pull down any episode, movie or album we desire from the web and enjoy it immediately. Boxee comes close to that goal, allowing you to pull down media from a slew of online providers including CBS, Comedy Central, Hulu, Joost, Shoutcast and Last.FM.  All those options under one roof, unbelievable!

Getting started with Boxee is about as simple as it gets in the Media Center world.  When you first load up you’ll have to provide some basic login information and then you’ll be taken to a front page that features a social-media feel to it with the ability to display what your friends are viewing/listening to, things you have recently viewed, and recommendations from the Boxee network.

Navigating to the left hand side of the screen reveals a sliding menu providing you with easy access the various types of content that Boxee handles.  Also on the menu are your user profile which will display your friends and recently viewed items and the settings page.  Starting off on the settings page will allow you to configure your local and network media such as any movies or music you have stored on your hard drive.  There are a number of options for customizing the appearance of Boxee though these seem to be somewhat lacking in their ability to personalize the interface.

Now on to the big show, navigating back to the sliding menu and browsing to the video section will give you further choices including Movies, TV Shows, and Internet.  Movies and TV Shows will be loaded from your hard drive and identified by Boxee with Title, Description and a bevy of other information but we’ve seen all that from other media center products in the past.

The big feature of Boxee is it’s support for a large number of online streaming video sources. From the outset you’ll see that Boxee supports some of the major players that Media Center users have been clamoring to get there hands on for years including Hulu, Joost and Comedy Central. There are also a large number of lesser know channels and undoubtedly support for adding even more channels in the future.

Delving into the channels themselves you’ll find that each channel has a custom tailored video browser providing for easy access to each channel’s unique features.  While the Hulu browser gives you fast access to the newest featured content, tv shows and even movies, the CNN channel gives you fast access to the latest news stories and popular picks.  With so many streaming video options a user could easily get lost for days watching their favorite episodes of Futurama.

Browsing through online music and photos is equally impressive.  Options like Shoutcast and Last.FM open your music experience up to a multitude of online radio stations at your fingertips. The pictures section even has online media support with services like Flickr and Picasa. Some services will require further login information including Last.FM, Flickr and Hulu if you wish to view mature rated content.

With all these exciting features for bringing streaming online media to your Media Center it’s hard to find fault with Boxee, especially considering the software is still in Alpha with only selective release at the moment.  A few snags did come up during our limited run however.

Though Boxee seems to have a well integrated social networking system in place it’s usability is limited at best currently with no easily apparent method for browsing or adding new friends from inside the program. This also tends to put a serious damper on the home page as the content displayed there is primarily based on what your friends and neighbors are viewing.

Early setup of our local media libraries was also slightly difficult if your using anything other than the default Windows media locations. When it came to network media the program wouldn’t allow browsing of the network at all, crashing whenever proceeding to choose our network locations. The settings page can also be fairly confusing at first with only minimal descriptions for what certain items do.

Barring these few issues Boxee provided an exceptional browser for watching streaming TV and listening to our favorite radio stations like Last.FM. The picture quality is almost better than you would expect from an online media source and audio performed flawlessly.

All in all, the Boxee experience is an exceptionally good one especially when utilized as an addition to your existing Media Center setup.  The unprecedented access to streaming online media will soon become irreplaceable as more and more users move away from standard cable setups for less traditional media. With the ease of access to more services with more content than any other Media Center application Boxee is sure to become a fast mainstay in the Media Center world.

Be sure to check out this article to find out how to add Boxee to your Media Center setup.

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Tagged As: boxee, extras library, hulu, install, plugins, programs

Missing Remote has a wonderful write-up and download available to help those who have been lucky enough so far to get in to the Boxee alpha test. Boxee is a media center style application that has gained popularity for it’s ability to stream video from online sources such as Hulu and Joost. These two services provide a wealth of content including full length shows from many of the popular TV networks and even full length movies. The problem is, how do we get these great features into Windows 7 Media Center?

For Windows 7 x86 users they can follow the guide at Missing Remote. Download the original Zip file, made by Missing Remote with help from Andrew Cherry, and extract it to your Boxee installation directory. Once you have a new directory under your Boxee installation (“C:\Program Files\Boxee\BoxeeMCE\”) navigate to that directory and right-click to lauch “InstallBoxee.cmd”. A dialog will appear noting the success of the install.

For x64 users you will need a slightly modified version of the Zip file (Alternative Download). This version allows your to install Boxee to the “Program Files (x86)” location that is the default for x64 users.

The process for getting Boxee onto the start menu is also slightly different in Windows 7 Media Center than it was in Vista. Once you’ve run the “InstallBoxee.cmd” from your Boxee\BoxeeMCE directory open Media Center and navigate to the Extras menu. Boxee should now be listed inside the Extras Library.

Unfortunately, there’s currently not much information on adding icons to the default menus such as TV or Movies. We can, however, add an icon to the main Extras menu from inside Media Center. To do this simply bring up the right-click (remote button “i”) and click on “Add to Start Menu”. You should now have access to Boxee from your Media Center in Windows 7 x86 or x64!

Be sure to check out the plug-ins section for more great additions to Media Center or Hack7MC’s preview of Boxee!

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Tagged As: boxee, extras library, featured, hulu, install, launcher, plugins, programs

Out of the box Windows 7 Media Center supports a few streaming radio services including Live365.com and XM Radio if your preferred service happens to be Shoutcast though you’re still in luck. Thanks to a plug-in developed by Sörnt of The Green Button you can get your Shoutcast streams directly into Media Center’s Radio section.

The plug-in, called mcShoutcast, is currently available in a number of languages and the most up to date versions are available for download from the mcShoutcast website. At the time of writing, however, the most recent version required the Orca fix to install on Windows 7 based machines. You can download version 3.5 with the Orca fix already applied right here (version works on both x86 and x64 machines).

Aside from this small fix the mcShoutcast plug-in is a wonderful addition to Media Center adding itself to the default radio section under “Music > Radio” and supporting ample features of it’s own. You are able to browse through the Shoutcast listings by Genre, Top 500 stations, random and even search for your favorite stations. Once you’ve found your favorites the plug-in even allows you to bookmark them to be added to your favorites which are displayed upon entering the app.

Unfortunately, the downloads above will only give you two weeks access to mcShoutcast. This plug-in does carry a price tag but a low one, a perfectly reasonable $10, which when compared to services such as XM Radio is practically nothing. Purchasing a license is a one-time affair however and once you’ve got your key you’ll be set for as long as you wish to use this great app.

All in all, this plug-in is a must have for Shoutcast fans and streaming media lovers alike. Although Shoutcast stations aren’t quite as versatile as services like Last.FM or Pandora it’s still worthwhile being able to choose from the thousands of DJ run stations the service offers.

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Tagged As: install, plugins, programs

All too often perfectly good plug-ins get left by the wayside with their original designers moving on to other projects and interests and these programs are simply left to rot.  Unfortunately this rot takes it’s toll over time with updates to the main program and even the under lying operating system.  Recently, with the release of the official Windows 7 Beta, a common problem is MSI installers coded to only work on older versions of Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate.  Fortunately, there is an easy fix for most of these installers.

The first thing you’ll need is a program from Microsoft called Orca.  Orca allows you to edit variables inside MSI installer packages and will enable us to remove that pesky Windows version check.  Of course this will not guarantee that our particular plug-in will work in Windows 7 but it will give us the opportunity to at least give it a try.  So get yourself a copy of the Orca setup either through Microsoft’s SDK or by downloading just the Orca program here.

Once you have Orca installed, open up the program and locate the MSI file that you wish to edit. Then you should see a list of keys on the left hand side, locate “CustomAction” and select it.  Once selected an additional listing of values will appear on the right hand side.  Locate the variable named “CA_ErrWrongWindowsVersion” and rename this variable to something else such as “dummy”.

Once you’ve done that save your work and close Orca.  That should be all there is to it, your plug-in should now install correctly.  There is of course no guarantee it will work correctly on a newer version of Windows or Media Center than it was designed for however.  Good Luck!

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Tagged As: featured, install, plugins, programs, windows 7